For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. Matthew 12:34

Proverbs 3:19 ~ Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of your crops.

Give God the best, not the leftovers. Faithful service has always required our best:

Offerings to God – Exodus 23:19 ~ “Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the LORD your God.”

Hard Things – Exodus 25:1-7 ~ Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: “Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering. And this is the offering which you shall take from them: gold, silver, and bronze; blue, purple, and scarlet thread, fine linen, and goats’ hair; ram skins dyed red, badger skins, and acacia wood; oil for the light, and spices for the anointing oil and for the sweet incense; onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod and in the breastplate.

Giving to the Church – Exodus 36:2-7Then Moses called Bezalel and Aholiab, and every gifted artisan in whose heart the LORD had put wisdom, everyone whose heart was stirred, to come and do the work. And they received from Moses all the offering which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of making the sanctuary. So they continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning. Then all the craftsmen who were doing all the work of the sanctuary came, each from the work he was doing, and they spoke to Moses, saying, “The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which the LORD commanded us to do.” So Moses gave a commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, “Let neither man nor woman do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary.” And the people were restrained from bringing, for the material they had was sufficient for all the work to be done—indeed too much.

Why doesn’t God want the leftovers?

Giving God the best shows that he will again meet our needs in the future.

Giving God the best shows where our priorities are.

Giving God the best shows that God has blessed us with more than we deserve.

Example: Abram giving Issac.

Lord, Have I done enough, am I giving you an leftovers? Is there anything more that I can give you?

The best possible effort: “You shall love the Lord with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.” ~Matthew 22:27

Giving God the best. This man saw a need and gave everything he had. “And Joses, who was also named Barnabas by the apostles, a Levite of the country of Cyprus, having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.” Acts 4:36-37

Giving God the leftovers. When we give leftovers, the blessing is missing. “But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” Acts 5:1-4

Lord, for you, the best. “And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him.
Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James theson of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.” Matthew 4:18-22

The difference is visible – “Then He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.” And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.” But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” Luke 59-62

Lord, there is church tonight, but let me first go…

Where is our dedication to choir practise?…”For church the song sounds good enough”

People give God the leftovers when they live the best years of their lives for themselves and then wait until when they are older to come to the Lord.

The widow gave all. She gave her best. “So He called His disciples to Himself and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood.” ” Mark 12:43-44

For ourselves we have time for everything. We work long ours to save for a car – it’s for the good of the whole family.

What is needed to give God our best?

To be saved by God’s grace

Sanctification – experience complete surrender of life. Not my will, but Thine.

we need this to give God our best.

by this the apostels endured persucution after Pentecost

giving God the best is not hard to give after you have given Him your all.

God will ask for what we need to surrender the most : Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. Luke 14:23

“Honour God with your possesions” – What’s in it for me? – Then Peter answered and said to Him, “See, we have left all and followed You. Therefore what shall we have?” So Jesus said to them, “Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.